BajaNomad

Road conditions and suggestions on Baja travel in October

bball123 - 9-14-2023 at 09:06 PM

I am heading for the Baja in early October. Crossing at Mexicali east border crossing. Is that one the easiest to get on the highway to San Fellipe? I will meander south and stop at BOLA and camp at La Gringa (Campo Coronado) for a few days and then head on southward on the old gravel road from BOLA along the Sea of Cortez. What are the road conditions on the gravel road from BOLA to Highway 1 near San Ignacio? I will be driving a Ford Econoline van with 2 wheel drive. What are the best spots to stop and camp by the water on the way? Any suggestions will be appreciated. Thank you!

advrider - 9-14-2023 at 09:48 PM

You are on the right track to SF. The gravel road from BOLA to Hwy 1 will be fine in your van for the most part. It was a lot of deep sand and wash driving past rancho Pedro Blanco last year, that could be a problem area. I would maybe looking and camping on the bluff at San Rafel with some of the locals. I know there are two places past that, but deep sand might be an issue.
You can also camp, get a room or some food at rancho Pedro Blanco.

Visual aid:

David K - 9-15-2023 at 08:24 AM

Quote: Originally posted by advrider  
You are on the right track to SF. The gravel road from BOLA to Hwy 1 will be fine in your van for the most part. It was a lot of deep sand and wash driving past rancho Pedro Blanco last year, that could be a problem area. I would maybe looking and camping on the bluff at San Rafel with some of the locals. I know there are two places past that, but deep sand might be an issue.
You can also camp, get a room or some food at rancho Pedro Blanco.


San Rafael


Rancho Piedra Blanca (White Stone Ranch)


RFClark - 9-15-2023 at 01:07 PM

I was going to do a separate report on HWY5 & HWY1 between Mexicali and Los Cabos. But there’s not much to report. Come on down the road’s fine.

That said a few notes.

The bridge north of San Felipe on HWY5 is down to 1 lane each way. Not because of water damage buy poor construction.

South of San Felipe there are 4 or 5 places where the water has undercut the road on the outflow side. This is a general problem in places where water has flowed across the highway.

The bridge south of Gonzaga is “fixed” with dirt.

There are no major problems between Gonzaga and the 28th.

The road work before Vizcaino continues there is one detour prior to Vizcaino.

The National Guard is at their usual location south of Vizcano and prior to Constitution.

The road through Santa Rosalia is great except about 30’ at the cement plant north of town. There is no sign be careful.

There’s not much else to say except right now it’s really green along the way.

The temperatures between Santa Rosalia and Loreto were around 40C and there were some dead fish from the warm water.

South from B.O.L.A.

AKgringo - 9-15-2023 at 06:02 PM

I drove it last September right after "Kay" blew through the area, and before any repairs, or even hazard marking was done. I left my Trooper in 2wd just to see if it was possible and I was able to make it through, but a few spots were almost too much, even with my limited slip rear axle.

I was running 265/75/16 B.F. Goodrich T/A KO2 tires aired down to about 20 psi and recommend airing down as low as you can depending on the weight of your van.

The good news is was that repairs and detours around washouts were made right away, and I cruised through on the way north a month later. I have not heard or read about conditions after "Hilary" washed Baja, but I think that road will receive fairly prompt attention (fingers crossed!).

I have stayed at San Rafael in the past, but on that trip it was a fairly busy fish camp and the vibe did not feel right for me at the time. I will still check it out every time I pass through there, and in the meantime I hope someone else can past recent conditions!

[Edited on 9-16-2023 by AKgringo]

AKgringo - 9-15-2023 at 06:35 PM

Quote: Originally posted by advrider  

You can also camp, get a room or some food at rancho Pedro Blanco.


I have never stayed at Piedra Blanca, but I have stopped for lunch there several times. Once, the restaurant appeared to be closed, but someone came out of the office and opened it up for me! They process machaca and queso at the ranch, so that is what I ate.

They also had some of their product for sale, so I brought some home with me.

LaTijereta - 9-17-2023 at 08:57 AM

One thing to be aware of in early October… pre running for the Baja 1000 will be open.. the course this is running “south to north”.. so be aware of on coming traffic..
Enjoy your trip south..

honda tom - 9-18-2023 at 09:40 AM

Baja 1000 prerunning wont start till late oct.

There is 1 soft sand wash crossing about 7 miles before rancho piedra.... about 50 to 75 yards across.. air down and keep moving.

The safest place to camp along this route will be at Betos, at san francisquito. He also has hot water showers. Not the "resort" but on the small bay 1/2 mile to the north.

bball123 - 9-18-2023 at 08:55 PM

Thank you all for your suggestions. I tried that road a couple of times but gave up mainly because I had just finished driving the road from San Felipe (Hwy 5) when it wasn't fully completed and I got tired of the gravel and slow going and turned around and finished my trip on Hwy. 1. This year I plan on taking a few new (for me) roads on the Pacific side as well. I like to paddle my kayak at the different beaches as I go. Probably won't be paddling so much on the Pacific side. I plan on checking out Bahia tortugas, Asuncion, and San Juanico. The worst part of my little trip is driving from my home in Long Beach, Washington to the border in Mexicali. ( I will miss not seeing CoCo at his corner).

AKgringo - 9-19-2023 at 08:28 PM

Quote: Originally posted by bball123  
The worst part of my little trip is driving from my home in Long Beach, Washington to the border in Mexicali.


If you are referring to driving I-5 in an RV, I agree. On my last trip down from Anchorage I drove a little four-cylinder Kia pulling a small trailer which put me in the slow lanes with the truck traffic.

I crossed over to the east side of the Cascade Range and explored new (to me) roads heading south through Washington, Oregon and Nevada. It probably added a full day to my journey, but I enjoyed it. I didn't keep track of how many extra miles I added to the trip, but the gas prices were quite a bit lower than what you would pay along the I-5 corridor in CA.